NATO, Russia experts debate eastward expansion

PSKOV, Russia -- A conference on expanding NATO ended Friday with Russian officials continuing to resist a plan to bring the former enemy alliance to their doorstep.

"NATO has not yet answered the question of what benefits Russia will have from expansion," Russian lawmaker Mikhail Margelov said in this northwestern city after a two-day debate on adding seven nations to the alliance.

The conference, which drew experts from NATO countries, was called to debate NATO's expansion.

At a summit next month in Prague, the leaders of the alliance are expected to invite the Baltic nations of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, which were once part of the Soviet Union, to join NATO along with Slovenia, Romania, Slovakia, and Bulgaria.